--The Pacers are coming off a 103-77 blowout loss, at home, to the San Antonio Spurs, their worst loss of the season. They are 6-10 in their last 16 games and have fallen percentage points behind the Miami Heat in the race for best record in the Eastern Conference.

--The Pistons are 5-0 against the spread as double-digit underdogs, a role they play for the sixth time tonight. The previous five double-digit spreads were for one of the two games at Miami, at Indiana, at San Antonio, at Houston, and at Los Angeles Clippers. The Pistons won two of those games outright, at Miami and at Indiana.

--Indiana leads the season series 2-1. The Pacers won the most recent meeting 112-104 in overtime on March 15, with George scoring 30 points and Evan Turner 20 off the bench, and Indiana outscoring Detroit 39-25 in the fourth quarter and overtime. The Pistons offered perhaps their most complete effort of the season in a 101-96 upset win Dec. 16 at Indiana. The Pacers won the series opener 99-91 on Nov. 5 at The Palace.

--Smith's 17.6-point career average in 29 games against Indiana is his best against any NBA team. In the Pistons' December win at Indiana, Smith scored 30 points, one of his four 30-point games this season. He has scored 69 points in three meetings with the Pacers.

--The Pacers continue to lead the league in opponents' points per game, at 91.8. They are 23rd in points scored, at 96.8.

--Hibbert ranks fourth in the league at 2.33 blocked shots per game.

--George ranks 11th in scoring at 21.7 points per game but no other Pacer ranks in the top 60 among players who qualify to be listed among league leaders. Of the eight teams without multiple top-60 scorers, only Indiana, Brooklyn and Memphis are likely playoff teams. Boston, Denver, Milwaukee, New York and Utah are the others.

Indiana had lost consecutive games only once all season until the last month. Then came a four-game losing streak March 4-9, which was brushed away, with three of the losses on the road. Now, the Pacers have another three-game losing streak, with all the losses by double-digit margins. They have lost five of their last six, with four of the losses on the road.

So is this just part of the normal ebb and flow of an NBA season? The Pacers have played 10 of their last 15 games on the road, so some late-season downtick was expected. But they haven't been particularly competitive in several of these losses. They're 6-10 in their last 16 games, with seven of the 10 losses by double digits.

There also appears to be some internal bickering, with Stephenson the apparent target of much of it, though he was the only one who played with any real verve in Monday's loss to San Antonio. George has disappeared in the last six weeks and his field-goal accuracy is in a consistent downward arc. The trade for Turner helps offensively but his defense is abysmal and drags down a team built on stops. Hibbert and West have been less effective as the playmakers and perimeter defenders suffer.

Hibbert said after the loss to the Spurs that the Pacers "should all go to group therapy and have an airing of grievances."

For much of this season, Indiana seemed to have a firm grip on the East and be the ultimate test for Miami to get back to the NBA Finals.

Now, it seems the Pacers have some internal repairs to make just to avoid first- or second-round elimination.